Legacy WM

"Our shared heritage shapes our legacy"

Legacy WM is a registered charity that has its roots in celebrating the heritage of post-war migrant communities in Birmingham. Our work highlights their relationship to the industrial, architectural, and cultural heritage of the city. Early projects included tracing migrant journeys through food, and developing a local heritage trail.

In the past five years we have developed and extended our work to involve the second and third generations, to recognise and support their contribution to our city.

These priorities enable Legacy WM to develop and deliver culturally diverse, creative, and interactive projects for many different audiences, in response to a range of needs.

We are based at the community heritage site of Soho House in Handsworth, Birmingham and deliver projects in the northwest inner-city wards of the city. These areas have faced long-term economic disadvantage but are rich in diverse cultural heritage and entrepreneurial spirit. To reflect this our projects focus on food, architecture, migration, and industrial history.

In this way, Legacy WM goes beyond recording and celebrating heritage. Our work uses this heritage to engage with local people – young and old – to increase their awareness of the cultural resources around them, using this as a means to promote physical and mental wellbeing.

In September 2015, we secured three-year funding from the Big Lottery for our Family Fit health and wellbeing project. This has enabled us to move to a new location at Soho House, where we aim to develop a community hub for the benefit of local people, bringing together the diverse communities of the area surrounding this beautiful heritage site. This has consolidated our role as champions of cultural heritage and its role in the wellbeing of local communities.